One heart
by DISC JOCKEY DJ
Summary: Rachel begins to show signs of an illness but will everyone be there for her. Credit goes to BoozedBoy for the first three chapters (1-3), not me.
1. Why hadn't she realised sooner

Credit goes to BoozedBoy for Chapters 1-3. I decided to finish this for him since it appears he hasn't updated (Or been here) since August 1st 2008. His story did mention that people could do this which I thought was odd. Origional story located here for reference purposes s/4425232/1/ . Make sure to read all of the description first before you chew me out.

Everybody minus Rachel is outside the movie theatre.

"If she doesn't hurry up we are going to miss the movie" Ross whined to  
everyone

"She still isn't answering so we will have to go in" Monica said as she  
hung up her cell phone.

The group headed inside as Monica took one final look around for her friend.

Once the movie was over the gang decided to head to Central Perk for a  
coffee.

"Guys, I think I'm going to check on Rachel" Monica said trying to hide  
her concern for her absent friend.

"Okay babe, you want me to come with you?" Chandler asked.

"No, it's okay. I'll see you at home" Monica replied as she kissed him  
goodbye.

As the gang headed inside Monica made her way to Rachel's apartment  
block. Rachel lived opposite her and Chandler in the penthouse apartment  
in Ross' block. Monica let herself in the building and Rachel's  
apartment with her key.

"Rach?" Monica called as she cautiously entered.

Monica looked around for a bit and saw Rachel's cell phone and purse on  
the kitchen table. Monica felt panic in her stomach. "Rach, are you  
here?" she called again.

Monica walked to her bedroom and sighed in relief as she saw Rachel  
sleeping on her bed. She walked over to her and gently woke her up.

"Rach, are you okay?" She softly said as Rachel squinted finding herself.

"Yeah, what's going on?" She replied confused.

"We were supposed to be going to the movies" Monica stated hoping to jog  
Rachel's memory.

"Oh God! Let me just get changed and I'll be ready" Rachel said sitting up.

"It's 10:30 – we saw the movie without you" Monica told her.

Rachel looked wide-eyed. "I came home and must have crashed out. I'm  
really sorry"

"That's okay sweetie. I just wanted to make sure you were okay"

"I'm fine. Do you want a coffee?" Rachel asked getting up.

"A tea would be good. I don't want to be awake all night"

Monica and Rachel chatted for a while before Monica headed home. When  
she entered her apartment Chandler was sitting on his couch in his  
pyjamas reading.

"Everything okay with Rachel?" He questioned.

"Yeah, she just crashed out. She doesn't really seem herself though"  
Monica said more to herself than Chandler.

However, Monica dismissed the thoughts as quickly as they came into her  
head. Rachel had a very stressful job at Louis Vuitton. She put in long  
hours but reaped a lot of benefits for it, which had come in handy when  
Monica recently had to borrow 10,000. She hated asking but Chandler was  
struggling with his internship at the advertising company and her wages  
didn't cover their expenses. Rachel had written her cheque without  
batting an eyelid and told her that she would happily write as many  
cheques as she needed.

It was a couple of weeks later when Phoebe was alerted to the fact that  
Rachel wasn't herself. Rachel had missed a lunch date with Phoebe so  
Phoebe headed to her apartment banging on the door. She was greeted with  
a bleary-eyed, pale Rachel.

"Rachel Karen Green what is going on? I have been sitting at Café Italy  
for almost an hour!" she barked.

"Oh My God Phoebe I am so sorry. I fell asleep"

"Again? You are always asleep!"

"I'm sorry, I was working all night" Rachel lied, she hadn't been  
working all night but she didn't know what was wrong with her. She was  
exhausted constantly and it was beginning to worry her.

"Let me just grab my stuff and we can go eat" Rachel said inviting  
Phoebe in.

Phoebe walked into Rachel's luxury apartment and waited for her friend.  
After 10 minutes Rachel was ready. They walked down to Café Italy and by  
the time they got there Rachel was exhausted. As soon as they were  
seated Rachel asked for a glass of water, rather breathless.

"Are you okay?" Phoebe asked concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Rachel lied again.

Rachel struggled throughout the meal; she wasn't hungry and felt sick to  
her stomach. She tried to keep up the act and pretend everything was  
normal. Once lunch was over Phoebe wanted to go shopping but Rachel made  
up a work excuse and headed home in a cab.

After a few more days of feeling like crap Rachel finally gave in and  
succumbed to her fear of doctors. She was going to ask Monica to come  
with her but decided against it knowing that Monica would go into full  
'controlling and nurturing' mode.

The doctor examined Rachel and put her tiredness down to a 'probable  
iron deficiency', however to be on the safe side he sent her to St.  
Vincent's for a series of tests.

Rachel felt relieved that she only had iron deficiency; she had been  
imagining the worst. As the next couple of days wore on she began taking  
the prescribed medication and she did feel better. She told the gang  
about her diagnosis and they were all pleased that she had sought help.  
Monica moaned that Rachel should have taken her to the doctors with her  
so Rachel failed to mention the hospital tests that she was taking in a  
couple of days.

Rachel had her Louis Vuitton driver take her to the hospital where they  
performed test after test. She was exhausted after the end of it, blood  
tests, urine samples, EKG checks, brain scan, heart scans – a full body  
servicing.

The next morning Rachel was getting dressed for work when the house  
phone rang, She answered it and was surprised to hear her doctor on the  
other end of the phone.

He told her that he had her test results and would be grateful if she  
could head to his office immediately.

"Is everything okay?" She asked startled.

"If you could come down, we can discuss it face to face" He replied.

Rachel hung up the phone and hesitated about calling Monica for support.  
However, she decided against it and opted to face this alone.

When she reached the doctors office she was taken straight through to  
Dr. Andrews. He greeted her and told her to take a seat. Without  
realising it Rachel just blurted out "Is it cancer?"

"No, you don't have cancer" Dr Andrews replied sitting behind his desk.

Rachel felt a rush of relief run over her.

"Your test results have come back and shown an abnormality with your  
heart. You heart is twice the size it should be and the cells around it  
are dying off."

Rachel looked confused.

"Your heart isn't beating as it should, which is caused by a lack of  
oxygen pumping through. This is mainly the cause of your tiredness and  
shortness of breath"

"So, this can be fixed right or is it something that I live with?"  
Rachel questioned.

"Rachel, you have a rare form of heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy.  
I can prescribe medication for the short term which will slow down the  
process but ultimately you will need a heart surgery – possibly a heart  
transplant.

Rachel looked on it shock, unsure of whether she heard him correctly.

"I need a heart transplant? That's impossible, I'm just tired. People  
who need heart transplants are seriously sick, hooked up to oxygen tanks  
and ventilators"

"Rachel you are in the early stages of heart disease but it is a  
progressive illness. In 6 months to a year you could be facing that  
possibility. Now there is a procedure that we could perform which would  
shrink your heart back down to its normal size and help with the blood  
flow through your heart but we are talking open heart surgery"

Rachel just looked dazed which the doctor picked up on.

"I know this is a lot to take in right now. My suggestion is to begin  
taking the medication, get your head around this and we will talk in a  
week and discuss all options"

Rachel thanked the doctor and left. She walked for ages, just in a daze  
at the news she had been given. She felt like sobbing, like breaking  
down and crying and never getting up having to deal with this.

She decided that she needed to talk this over with somebody. Somebody  
who would take care of this situation and make it all go away. The  
person who would comfort her and reassure her that she would be okay.  
That person was of course Monica.

Rachel walked into the apartment and found Monica on top of her  
sideboard cleaning the tops of the cupboards.

"Hey sweetie" She greeted merrily.

"Hey" Rachel managed back.

"Could you hand me that disinfectant?" Monica asked not paying that much  
attention to Rachel's sad form.

Rachel handed her the bottle. "Do you have a minute to talk?"

"Sure, you will have to be quick though I have to get this whole kitchen  
clean before I head to the restaurant" Monica quickly replied.

Rachel just stood still, unsure of how to form the words.

"Rachel what is it?" Monica said getting frustrated at the top of the  
cupboards. She figured Rachel would need to talk about some date from  
hell, or the work day from hell.

Rachel snapped out of her daze and looked at Monica. "Nothing, it's  
nothing. I'll be fine. I'll catch up with you later" Rachel said as she  
headed out of the door.

Monica looked at Rachel and could tell that she had something serious on  
her mind. Her face was pale and she looked like she had the weight of  
the world on her shoulders. "Rach" Monica called out as she jumped down  
from the sideboard onto a chair.

Monica ran into the hall and caught up with Rachel before she hit the  
stairs.

"Rachel, what's going on?" Monica asked concerned.

"I…. I have…. Look lets talk about this when you have time" Rachel said  
dismissing her and trying to get out of the situation.

"I always have time for you. Now come inside and talk" Monica said sweetly.

Monica sat Rachel down on the couch and noticed that Rachel was shaking.

"Okay, you need to tell me what's going on because I'm starting to freak  
out" Monica said holding her hand.

"It's not as bad as…. Okay, so I had to go to the hospital for a series  
of tests…."

Monica's stomach flipped over. Why had she been so stupid? Rachel had  
been sick for weeks, months even and she ignored it. Why hadn't she  
taken her best friend to the doctor when she first became concerned?

"The doctor called this morning and asked me to go down and as it turns  
out I have heart disease" Rachel felt like a weight had been lifted off  
her shoulders once she told Monica.

Monica just looked at her confused. She had been waiting for the word  
cancer to come out of Rachel's mouth.

"How can you have heart disease? You're 24 years of age" Monica said in  
an almost accusing way.

Rachel just lightly shook her head. Monica could see the fear in her  
younger friend's eyes so decided to take control of the situation and  
spin a positive light on it. She would research and worry later.

"Okay, so you have heart disease. This can be controlled by medication  
right? My dad's friend has heart disease, he takes Beta Blockers and  
lives a pretty normal life"

Rachel sat almost scared of Monica's reaction. "I have a rare form of  
heart disease, it's really progressive. My heart is twice the size it  
should be and I need surgery soon and then they are talking heart  
transplants"

Monica's heart sank. She couldn't get her head around her best friend  
needing a heart transplant.

Rachel sat looking at Monica taking in the information and she saw the  
fear and worry in her face, something that was almost non-existent. Once  
Rachel saw that Monica was scared she broke, the tears started to fall  
from her eyes. Monica quickly realised that she wasn't helping the  
situation and took her friend in an embrace.

Monica held Rachel and stroked her hair. "This is going to be okay Rach.  
I promise you. I'm here and we're going to sort this out together". She  
soothingly whispered into her ear.

After a couple of minutes Rachel composed herself and pulled back from  
Monica.

"I'm okay" She said finding her inner strength.

Practical Monica took over and she decided that she needed to know all  
the facts before she drew up her plan.

"Okay, you need to tell me exactly what the doctor said. How are we  
going to deal with this?" Monica asked her

Rachel went through exactly what the doctor had said and the tests she  
had at the hospital and showed Monica the prescription the doctor had  
given her.

"This is what we are going to do. I'm going to go and get this  
prescription for you and then go to your apartment and get your stuff so  
you can move in here…"

"No Mon, I don't want to change everything. I need to keep this as  
normal as possible. I need to stay at my own place and work…"

"Rachel, you can't work!"

"Monica please" Rachel almost begged.

Monica knew that she was becoming overpowering and wanted to keep Rachel  
as calm as possible.

"I'm sorry. Let me go and get your prescription and then we will take  
things from there" Monica needed to clear her head, she needed to get  
away from Rachel so she could cry.

"I'll come with you" Rachel said standing up.

"Why don't you stay here and rest?" Monica offered.

"Please don't treat me like I'm dying Monica"

"I'm sorry"

The two of them headed down to the nearest pharmacy and picked up  
Rachel's prescription. Monica felt on edge the whole 10 minute journey,  
she knew that it wasn't going to happen because Rachel had been sick for  
a while but she felt like she was going to collapse and not get up again.

Once they collected the medications they headed back to Rachel's  
apartment. Chandler was due home for lunch and Rachel didn't feel like  
seeing anybody. When they reached Rachel's apartment Rachel sat down on  
the sofa whilst Monica read her medication instructions. She had an  
inhaler which she was to use as and when she felt breathless, a blood  
thinning medication to be taken twice daily and Clorocine to be taken 4  
times daily.

After a few minutes of silence Rachel looked at Monica.

"What am I going to do?" She almost begged.

"You're going to get through it. I'm going to come to your doctor's  
appointment on Friday and we are going to discuss every option and  
treatment and we are going to be okay. If it's a heart transplant that  
you need then we will get you on the list and search the God damn  
country until we get the best one available."

Rachel laughed. Only Monica could make a heart transplant list into a  
competition. Monica and Rachel hung out all day and Rachel felt better  
having her around.

At 7.00PM Monica looked out of Rachel's window and saw her friends  
sitting in her apartment with Chandler. She wished that she could be  
there not knowing what she knew. Monica looked at Rachel who was dosing  
on the couch. She walked over to her and knelt down.

"Hon, the guys are over the road, we should tell them" She softly suggested.

Rachel nodded and begun to get up.

"If you want to stay here then I can tell them?" Monica offered.

"No. I should be there"

Monica and Rachel headed over the road and walked into the apartment to  
be greeted by Ross, Chandler, Phoebe, Joey and Charlie.

"Are you okay?" Chandler asked Monica concerned.

Monica tried to dismiss him and tell him that she was fine but he continued.

"I thought you had died when I came home and all the cupboards were in a  
mess. You would never leave the kitchen in this mess unless somebody had  
died" He stated.

Monica wished that the floor would open up and swallow Chandler whole!  
The last thing on her mind was her damn cupboards.

Rachel just smiled because she knew Chandler was right.

"Guys, could we all sit down. Rachel and I need to talk to you" Monica  
said taking control of the situation.

"Oh My God! You're lesbians and you're leaving Chandler!" Joey stated  
excitedly

Monica looked mad but when she saw Rachel laughing she smiled aswell.  
The guys all sat on the couch as Rachel sat on the armchair. Monica sat  
on the arm next to her.

Rachel knew that once she told everybody it became real. They would no  
longer look at her like Rachel but an invalid.

"So, what's going on?" Ross asked urging one of them to speak.

Monica knew that Rachel wasn't going to say anything so she began.

"You guys know how Rachel hasn't been well lately and she went to the  
doctors. Well she had her results back and it turns out that she has a  
heart condition" Monica explained.

"What kind of heart condition?" Phoebe asked

Monica took Rachel's hand as she continued.

"It's heart disease"

"That's impossible!" Ross stated. "You're too young for heart disease"

"It's a rare form" Monica told him.

"So what happens now?" Chandler questioned

"Well, we're going to the doctors office on Friday and we are going to  
discuss all treatments available and then we will take it from there"  
Monica said matter of factly watering down the truth.

"So, you're going to be okay then? It's not really anything too worry  
about?" Joey said hoping to wash over this and pretend it isn't real.

"Of course it's something to worry about!" Phoebe exclaimed "Millions of  
people die from this every year!

"Phoebe!" Monica scolded.

"I'm sorry" Phoebe said forgetting that Rachel was in the room. "I don't  
mean that you are going to die Rach. I meant old people, sick people"

"I am sick Phoebe. This isn't going to get any better, its only going to  
get worse over the next few months and they think that a heart  
transplant is my only option" Rachel told everybody deciding to give  
them the full facts.

Everybody sat in shock.

"We will all get tested Rachel" Joey enthusiastically told her

Rachel smiled at him "thanks Joe, but I think you need your heart"

It took him a while to understand but he finally got it.

"Are you okay?" Charlie finally said breaking the silence.

"Yeah. It took a minute to get my head round but I'm fine"

"Look Rachel is going to be okay. That isn't debatable. But she is going  
to need a lot of love and caring and that's what we're here for" Monica  
said trying to break everybody out of their thoughts.

"You're right" Chandler said standing up and pulling Rachel up into a  
hug. The others followed suit and all hugged her one by one. Monica sat  
on the couch biting her bottom lip and brushing Chandler away as he  
tried to comfort her. If she let go she would sob uncontrollably and  
never stop and she didn't want to do that in front of Rachel.

The gang hung out for an hour until they all decided to head home.

"You want me to stay over?" Monica said walking over to Rachel as she  
helped her with her coat.

"No, I'm fine. I need some time alone. But thank-you for today" Rachel  
said squeezing her hand.

"I'll grab my coat and walk you over" Monica said

"I can walk with Ross and Charlie"

"I'll make sure she gets home Mon" Ross told her.

"Okay, call me if you need me and take those medications when you get  
in" Monica told her.

The gang all said goodbye and Monica closed the door. Before Chandler  
had a chance to say anything Monica began.

"Please don't be nice to be. Just let me deal with this"

Chandler knew that Monica was close to breaking but she was holding it  
together for Rachel's sake. So he watched as she grabbed her laptop and  
went online. He had no doubt that she was typing Heart Disease into Google.

It took about 10 minutes of Monica surfing until she finally broke. She  
sobbed uncontrollably. Chandler walked behind her and pulled her into  
the hug she had needed all day long. Chandler knew his role in this  
whole thing. Monica would be there for Rachel 200 and he would be there  
for Monica, picking up the slack and letting her cry late into the night  
letting out her biggest fears.

"I can't lose her Chandler" Monica sobbed into his chest.

"You won't. Rachel is a fighter and she will be fine"

"Heart surgery carries one of the highest fatality risks"

"You shouldn't be looking at that stuff. Rachel is going to be fine." He  
tried to reassure her.

"It says that on-line that the majority of people with heart disease die  
within 3 years of diagnosis. If she goes into congestive heart failure  
she could just drop dead…"

"Monica stop" Chandler interrupted. "You can't worry about something  
that will never happen. You can't compare this to anything else, we need  
to see what the doctor says and take it one step at a time".

"Thank-you" Monica told him as she hugged him closely.

Monica cleaned her kitchen and headed to bed about an hour after  
Chandler. Rachel's lights were off which Monica was pleased about. She  
prayed that Rachel got a good night's sleep. Monica on the other hand  
couldn't. She slept for about 2 hours and was then wide awake, her mind  
racing with endless possibilities.

"Try and sleep Mon" Chandler told her as he stirred.

"I'm sorry if I woke you" She told him.

"Monica sitting here worrying isn't going to help. You need to get your  
rest so that you stay strong for her"

"When she told me she was sick and had heart disease, my initial  
reaction was relief. I thought that she was going to tell me that she  
had cancer. I was convinced. So when she said heart disease I felt  
relieved. Does that make me an awful person?"

"Monica of course it doesn't. The only person Rachel wants throughout  
this whole thing is you".

By 5.00AM Monica gave up and got out of bed. Chandler was snoring  
lightly next to her and she didn't want to disturb him further. She  
looked out of her window and saw that Rachel's place was still in  
darkness. She considered going over to her to check she was okay but she  
remembered that Rachel wanted everything kept as normal as possible.

By 7.00AM Chandler was up and dressed for work and Monica couldn't hold  
back any further. She picked up the phone and called Rachel.

"Hello?" Rachel answered.

"Hey, I didn't wake you did I?" Monica quickly asked.

"No, I'm just getting ready for work"

Monica was going to ask Rachel to stay home but she felt that she needed  
to let her carry on as normal for as long as possible.

"How did you sleep?" She asked.

"Good. I feel a bit nauseous this morning but I'm guessing that's the  
tablets?" Rachel told her.

"Yeah, that was down as a side-effect. Okay, I was just checking your  
okay. Call me if you need me, I'll be at the restaurant from 11.00am"

"Bye"

Monica felt relieved after speaking to Rachel, she knew that she was  
okay and deep down she was pleased that she was going to work at least  
it would take her mind off of it.

The next few days passed and things picked up as normal. Rachel  
continued to work and put it to the back of her mind while everybody  
tried to discreetly help her. It was Thursday evening when Phoebe walked  
into Joey's apartment and caught him on Chandler's laptop. He quickly  
closed the screen when he saw her.

"Joseph, what are you doing?" She enquired.

"Porn" He lied.

"Don't lie Joey, you never close the screen when you are looking at  
porn. You show it to everyone!"

He hesitated before telling her "I'm trying to find information on heart  
disease"

Phoebe looked at him like she would a young child trying to understand  
something they knew nothing about. They had all secretly researched  
heart disease over the past few days and all dealt with it in their own  
way but Joey avoided discussing it and was uncomfortable around Rachel.

"I can hardly understand any of it though – there are so many different  
types" He told her.

Phoebe shut the lid of the laptop and sat next to Joey.

"What is it you want to know?" She asked him gently.

"Is Rachel going to die?" He softly asked.

Phoebe knew that she needed to be honest with Joey, he wanted the truth  
and she was going to give it to him.

"It's a possibility".

Joey looked down like he had been crushed.

"Joey, none of us know what is going to happen but Rachel is very sick.  
She is going to have to go into hospital and she will probably need a  
big operation. And yeah it's going to be scary seeing her that ill but  
we need to stay strong for her. I know that you have been avoiding her  
the past few days but she is still Rachel".

"If I don't see her sick then I don't have to deal with it" Joey said.

"But Rachel had to deal with it. She has to live with this every minute  
of every day. And you being weird around her only makes her feel worse.  
You can't catch what she has Joe so the next time you see her give her a  
big hug and tell her that you love her"

"I don't want her to die Pheebs" Joey said breaking.

Phoebe stood and embraced him. "None of us do Joe and please God she  
doesn't but we have to be prepared"

After his chat with Phoebe, Joey headed over to Rachel's apartment and  
spent the

evening with her. They hung out and laughed and joked and it was exactly  
what Rachel needed to take her mind off the looming doctor's appointment.

The next morning Monica was like a female Hitler. She had been awake  
since 6.00AM and was wound as tightly as a spring. Chandler tried to  
calm her down but she wasn't interested so he just let her rant. Phoebe,  
Joey and Ross also just let her snap at everyone of them as they sat  
around her table.

"For God Sakes Ross – you can't put the empty milk carton in the  
garbage?!" She snapped.

"Sorry" He mumbled looking at the others.

"It's not too much to ask is it?! I mean I don't mind you all having  
breakfast here just obey the rules" She ranted as she wiped down the  
fridge like a maniac.

"Morning" Rachel said as she walked in dressed casually.

"Morning sweetie" Monica said walking over to her. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I feel good".

"Do you want some coffee?" Chandler asked.

"Are you stupid Chandler?!" Monica snapped as she turned around "She  
isn't allowed caffeine!"

"Sorry" He mumbled looking at the others.

At 8.30AM Monica grabbed her things including her notebook and pen.

"What's that for?" Rachel asked.

"So I can take notes. I want to remember everything he says" She said  
Monica-esq.

Rachel just rolled her eyes at the others as they all smiled. Monica led  
her out of the door and they walked to Rachel's building car park where  
they got in Rachel's Porsche. Monica drove and Rachel was in the  
passenger seat.

When they got to the doctors office, they sat in the waiting room.  
Rachel began to feel nervous and anxious which Monica picked up on.

"It's going to be okay" She reassured her squeezing her hand.

Receptionist: Miss Green – Dr Andrews is ready for you now.

They stood up and headed into his office.

"Rachel, Monica – how are you both?" He greeted.

"We've been better" Monica answered.

"How are you feeling Rachel? Has the medication helped?" Dr Andrews  
asked her.

"Yeah I guess so. I'm still tired but not as breathless." Rachel stated.

"She's been very nauseous though" Monica continued.

"Okay, if you want to hop on the bed, I'll take a quick listen to your  
chest."

Rachel did and the doctor placed his stethoscope on her chest listening  
intently. Monica felt her stomach going over. She didn't know how she  
would cope if Rachel had to have surgery. After examining her he made  
her do a few breathing exercises which Monica thought she struggled with.

"Okay Rachel. If you want to take a seat" He offered as he sat back  
behind his desk.

"Your breathing is very ragged. You need to start thinking about taking  
it easy. You can't push yourself like you used to. Your heart isn't able  
to pump enough oxygen through so when you feel tired you need to stop"

Monica scribbled everything he said down and then looked up "What's the  
prognosis here Dr Andrews? What should we expect?"

"If the medications don't open up her valves to allow more oxygen and  
blood to pass through we will need to operate. Once the oxygen is  
flowing normally her heart should reduce in size."

"How and when will we know if the medication is working?" Monica asked  
still scribbling everything down

"I'm going to book Rachel in for a scan next Thursday. If there is no  
improvement by then we will have to schedule surgery".

"And then what?" Monica urged

"Rachel will be off her feet for 6-10 weeks and then we take it step by  
step"

"You mentioned that Rachel could need a heart transplant?"

"Yes that is a possibility. Our last resort but a definite possibility"

"Could you be a bit clearer please Dr Andrews?" Monica asked "Are we  
talking in a couple of weeks, months, years?"

"At this stage we don't know Monica. If she doesn't respond to the  
medication or surgery and her heart continues to deteriorate we will  
need to look at transplant options."

"Okay, so worst case scenario, she doesn't respond to meds or surgery -  
how long are we talking before you get need a transplant?"

"Monica, lets cross one bridge at a time" He told her.

"I'm sorry but I need to know. Rachel I know that this is about you so  
if you are uncomfortable you could wait outside?"

"I'm fine, I need to know aswell"

The doctor gave in "Okay worst case scenario is she doesn't respond to  
meds or surgery then we will need to think about transplants  
immediately. It could be as soon as a month."

"And how will you know she isn't responding?"

Dr Andrews again hesitated and looked at Rachel to make sure she was  
okay for him to continue, she nodded and he did so. "Rachel will become  
much sicker, she won't be able to breath without the aid of an oxygen  
mask, her movement will become very limited and if we cant find a  
transplant straight away and her condition deteriorates further we will  
need to consider putting Rachel on a ventilator until a transplant  
becomes available."

Monica felt like she wished she hadn't asked. Dr Andrews could see he  
shocked them both.

"This is worst case scenario though. We are only at step one. You can't  
worry about transplants at this stage."

"So if the medication works – then what?" Monica asked.

"Then that's great. If we can open the valves through medication and her  
heart shrinks back to normal size then we just monitor her on a monthly  
basis. You will need to continue with meds Rachel and we just stay on  
top of the situation. The same with the surgery. If after 12 weeks you  
are responding brilliantly we will just monitor you on a monthly basis."

"Okay, so there are options available right now?" Monica said feeling  
better.

"Fortunately we have caught this earlier, before too many cells have  
been killed off and her heart is the size of a football. Unfortunately  
Rachel has an aggressive form of this disease so we need to stay on top  
of it."

"Well now we can. Thank-you Doctor" Monica said standing up shaking his  
hand.

"Rachel is there anything you want to ask me?" He questioned as she  
stood up.

"No, I think Monica covered it all" she smiled as she shook his hand and  
left.

Once they got in the car Monica spoke.

"I'm feeling confident about this. I have a good feeling that we are  
going to beat this with just medication."

Rachel just smirked at her.

"What? I think that since Tuesday when you began taking them you have  
shown a massive improvement" Monica stated.

When they got home the gang were all still at the apartment.

"What are you guys doing here?" Monica asked as she opened the door.

"We wanted to know what happened" Ross said.

"Basically we just have to wait and see if the medication is working. We  
have to go for a scan on Thursday and if it's all okay then they just  
keep monitoring her with medication and if not then surgery will be  
considered"

"So, we just need to pray that the medication works?" Chandler questioned.

"Yeah – exactly." Monica said.

Later that day everyone went back to work including Rachel. Monica typed  
up her notes. As she typed she begun to cry again, Rachel was sick and  
medication wasn't going to cure this. Deep down Monica knew that Rachel  
was worse than she was letting on and the doctor didn't seem convinced  
when he was examining her.

Monica let all her fears out while Rachel wasn't around, she needed to  
be strong for Rachel, to let her know that she would take control of  
this. Chandler had been great, he had been a complete rock. He let her  
cry, shout and moan at him and all without being angry or annoyed.

The weekend passed and everybody tried to carry on as normal as possible.

On Sunday Monica did dinner for everybody. The doctor had said that  
Rachel should try and lead a healthy lifestyle, avoiding any fatty foods  
from her diet so Monica knew where she could shine.

The guys all hung out whilst Phoebe helped with dinner and Rachel did  
some paperwork for Louis Vuitton.

"Guys dinner is about to be served" Monica called out.

Everybody sat down as Monica helped Rachel dish her dinner up. She  
overloaded her on vegetables and greens.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to eat all that Mon" She said.

"You can at least try" Monica said.

Once everybody had sat down Ross proposed a toast.

"I just want to say that it's great sitting around this table with you  
guys, I have my wonderful girlfriend Charlie here and great friends. I  
know that we don't know what's in store over the next couple of months  
but Rachel I want you to know that we are all here and everything will  
be fine. Cheers."

Everyone else: "Cheers / Well said / That was nice"


	2. I'll be here when you wake up

By Tuesday morning Rachel felt terrible. She had managed to struggle  
through work on the Monday before going home and collapsing into bed.  
When she woke on Tuesday she was terribly weak and gasping for breath.  
Rachel managed to shower and get dressed but she couldn't face work. She  
used her pump and called Monica.

"Hello?" Monica answered while folding her laundry.

"Hey, it's me." Rachel managed to get out. "Do you think you could come  
over?"

"What's wrong?" Monica instantly fired back whilst walking to her window.

"I don't feel right." Rachel said.

But before she could finish the sentence Monica had hung up and began  
running over to Rachel's.

"What's going on?" Chandler quickly asked as Monica dashed past him.

"Rachel isn't well!"

"Shall I come?" He called after her.

"No. I'll call you". She said as she bolted down the stairs.

Monica ran across to Rachel's and jumped straight in the lift pressing  
the 12th floor button a 100 times.

She burst straight through Rachel's door to find her laying on the couch.

Rachel smiled as she saw her come through like a rocket gasping for breath.

"What's wrong? Shall I call 911?" Monica quickly asked feeling her forehead.

"I… don't think its…. That bad. I can't catch my… breath" Rachel choked  
out gasping for air.

Monica looked at her and knew this was serious, this was where it began.  
Rachel was grey with dark circles under her eyes and she was straining  
for breath without realising.

Monica took out her cell phone and scrolled down for Dr Andrews. She had  
stored his number in her phone in case of emergencies.

She told him Rachel's symptoms and he suggested that Monica get her to  
the hospital immediately, offering to arrange for an ambulance to  
collect her. Monica told him that she would drive her there herself and  
he would be waiting.

"Sweetie, I need to get you to the hospital." Monica told her.

"Is that necessary?" Rachel gasped out.

"Yes." Monica collected Rachel's medications and put them in a bag and  
grabbed her keys.

Monica became increasingly concerned in the elevator as she held Rachel  
up gasping for breath. She slowly led her to the Porsche and got in and  
drove. On the way to the hospital she called Chandler and explained the  
situation.

When they reached the hospital, Monica new that Rachel wouldn't be able  
to walk so found a wheelchair at the reception and helped Rachel into  
it. She rushed her up to the 5th floor where Dr Andrews was. They helped  
Rachel onto a bed and he began examining her.

"Let's put her on 100 oxygen re-breather and get her into a gown" Dr  
Andrews told the nurse.

"What's going on?" Monica asked not bothering to hide her concern

"Her condition is deteriorating. We will get a scan and go from there"  
He said starting Rachel's chart.

Dr Andrews excused himself and Monica followed.

"How worried should I be right now?" Monica asked him.

"We won't know anything definite until we get the scan results back.  
Just try and stay calm for her Monica"

When Monica walked back into the room Rachel was in a gown and had a  
nasal canular around her. Her head was laid back into the pillows.

"Everything okay?" Rachel asked

"Yeah, its fine. Just relax" Monica told her stroking her hair back.

After 10 minutes the nurse helped Rachel into a dressing gown and  
wheelchair and took her for her scan. As Monica watched Rachel sitting  
in the wheelchair with the hospital gowns around her and breathing tubes  
around her face she began to cry. Rachel looked like a sick person. It  
happened much quicker than Monica had thought. She quickly wiped away  
her tears before Rachel looked up.

Monica waited outside while Rachel had her scan, the scan lasted 28  
minutes and when Rachel came out she was exhausted.

The nurse and Monica took her back to her room where they helped her  
into bed. She laid back and caught her breath while her eyes were closed.

"Hey, can we come in?"

Monica looked up and saw Chandler, Joey, Phoebe and Ross at the doorway.

"Hey Guys" Rachel muttered.

They all looked shocked at her appearance.

"How are you feeling?" Chandler asked breaking the silence.

"I'm okay."

"She's just a bit breathless. She's had a scan we are just waiting for  
the results. You guys didn't have to come down here" Monica told them.

"Where else would we be?" Phoebe said more as a statement than a question.

Rachel closed her eyes and struggled with her breathing as the guys all  
stood around. Chandler could see that Monica had been crying and mouthed  
"Are you okay?" to get a silent nod back.

After about an hour Dr Andrews and another doctor walked into Rachel's  
room. He was surprised at how full the room was.

"Rach? Dr Andrews is here" Monica said to Rachel lightly trying to wake  
her up.

As Rachel stirred Dr Andrews asked the guys to step out of the room, he  
only wanted to speak to Rachel and Monica.

"It's fine. I would rather they heard, save having to repeat it" Rachel  
said.

Dr Andrews nodded and begun. "Rachel this is Dr. Corday. She is the  
leading cardiac surgeon here at St. Vincents's"

Dr Corday reached out to shake Rachel's hand.

"So it's definitely surgery then?" Rachel said.

"I'm afraid so Rachel" Dr Corday started. "The disease is much more  
advanced than we would have liked so we have to operate sooner rather  
than later. I have scheduled you surgery for 09:00AM tomorrow morning."

"That soon!" Monica spat out.

"I'm afraid so. I'm very confident that after this surgery you will be  
back on your feet in no time. Have you ever had surgery before Rachel?"

"No"

"Well, it's a complicated surgery but I have every faith that we will  
get results. After 09:00PM tonight you won't be able to eat or drink  
anything. Then in the morning the porter will bring you to the OR where  
we will transfer you to a hard table. The nurse will secure your hands  
and arms to the table and insert an IV into your neck. After a few  
seconds you will begin to feel drowsy and fall asleep. Once you are  
asleep we will insert a tube into your throat and put you on a  
ventilator. Your breathing will be monitored the whole time and we will  
begin. I will make a 6-8 inch incision down your chest so that we can  
spread your ribs."

"You know, I really don't need to know the details. I'll just trust you"  
Rachel said feeling more nervous with every word that came out of her mouth.

"Okay. But if you have any questions or worries then please ask. I'll  
see you in the morning" Dr Corday said before leaving with Dr Andrews.

The guys all came up to her bed.

"Are you okay?" Phoebe asked.

"Yeah, I am. I just have to go with it I guess, I don't really have much  
choice" Rachel said sounding as if she had made peace with her fate.

"Er, I just need to use the bathroom" Monica said making an excuse to  
get out of the room.

"There's a bathroom right here" Joey pointed out.

But Monica was gone, she got out of the hallway and sobbed. She couldn't  
handle the fact that her best friend was about to have major heart  
surgery. She dropped to her knees and sobbed, she was only brought out  
of her state when she felt a hand on her back and shoulders pulling her  
up. Chandler pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Make this not happen Chandler!" she sobbed into him.

"I can't do that honey. It is going to happen, much sooner than we  
thought but it's here and we have to deal with it."

"When did you become the strong one?" Monica laughed wiping her eyes.

"I think you have been rubbing off on me" Chandler smiled.

"Thank-you for being here" Monica said hugging him.

"We should get back to her" Chandler said.

"I'm going to let my eyes and redness go down. I don't want her to know  
that I'm crying."

"Okay, I'll tell her you are on the phone to the restaurant"

When Chandler walked back into the room everybody looked at him silently.

"Is she okay?" Rachel asked

"Yeah, she's just calling in to work" Chandler lied.

"I know she's upset Chandler" Rachel told him

"She just doesn't want to upset you further. She's fine I promise".  
Chandler said.

After a few minutes Rachel realised that she hadn't told work.

"I should call in" Rachel said.

"I thought you were the boss?" Joey chimed in.

"I am but I should tell them that I'm not going to be there" Rachel said.

The gang all left the room whilst Rachel called in. She explained to  
Karen where she was and what was happening. Karen was very sympathetic  
and said she wished Rachel had told her sooner. Rachel said that as soon  
as she was up to it she would do paperwork from home but Karen told her  
to take all the time she needed to fully recover and she would visit her  
as soon as she was allowed.

After 20 minutes the gang, including Monica came back into her room.

"Are you okay?" Rachel asked her concerned.

"I'm fine sweetie" Monica said masking her fears and worries.

After sitting in her room for 6 hours straight Rachel told everybody to  
go home.

"That's nice! We're trying to keep you company" Phoebe joked. "Maybe  
tomorrow I will bring my guitar?"

"Open heart surgery doesn't sound so bad after all" Rachel joked.

Everybody said goodbye to Rachel and Monica.

"Mon, please go home" Rachel pleaded.

"You don't want me to stay?" Monica asked

"I'm just going to crash out, go home with Chandler and I'll see you in  
the morning"

"Are you sure?" Monica asked.

"100"

"I'll see you in the morning. Call me if you need me" Monica said  
kissing her goodbye.

Once they all left Rachel felt alone. Her thoughts overwhelmed her and  
she panicked. She took some time and got her head around what was  
happening, she could either go along relaxed or go along panicked and  
scared – either way her fate was out of her hands. Rachel was pulled out  
of her thoughts when the nurse entered and gave Rachel a special soap.

"Okay dear. I need you to wash with this and make sure you smother your  
chest with it. Do you need help showering?"

"No, I'll be fine" Rachel replied.

Rachel removed the oxygen prongs and got up and headed to the shower.  
She washed thoroughly, including her hair and gagged at the smell of the  
soap. Once she was dry she put a fresh hospital gown on. It was a gown  
that did up from the front so she wasn't showing her arse. She blow  
dried her hair and felt exhausted once she was finished. She got back  
into bed and put the nasal canular on.

As she was nodding off the nurse re-entered with her trolley.

"I need to set you up with an IV honey" she told her.

She took Rachel's right arm and began tapping for a vein. After a minute  
she inserted the needle. Rachel flinched a little when she felt the prick.

Rachel fell asleep soon after the nurse had finished but woke at 3:00AM  
in a deep sweat. Her mind was racing and she was unable to go back to sleep.

At 5.50AM Monica showered and dressed and grabbed Rachel's bag which she  
had packed at her apartment the night before.

"What are you doing?" Chandler asked bleary-eyed.

"I'm going to go to the hospital. There's no point sitting waiting until  
7.00AM, I might as well go now."

"Monica they won't let you in. Rachel will be sleeping and they won't  
want you to disturb her. They told us that we can see her at 8.00AM"

"I can sit with her" Monica said defiantly.

"No you can't, they will be getting her ready for surgery. You will be  
sitting with her for the next few weeks. Just chill out" Chandler said  
calmly.

Monica pulled a face and relented, she knew that Chandler was right. By  
7.15AM Monica was climbing the walls. The guys were all at her apartment  
having coffee.

"Can we leave please?" Monica said

"We're not allowed to see her until 8.00" Ross told her

"There might be traffic. I would rather be there than not"

"It's a 15 minute drive Monica at rush hour" Phoebe told her.

At 7.30 the guys finally gave in and left. Monica and Chandler went in  
Rachel's Porsche while Phoebe drove Joey and Ross in her cab.

When they reached Rachel's ward at 7:42 the charge nurse asked them to  
wait while the nurse finished with Rachel.

"Is everything okay?" Monica asked concerned.

"Yes of course, she had a good night. The nurse is just cleaning her up  
for surgery"

After a few minutes the nurse left Rachel's room with her trolley and  
Monica and co were allowed in.

"Hi Sweetie" Monica greeted, coming over to hug and kiss her.

"You smell like disinfectant" Monica told her.

"They keep washing me in it!" Rachel said disgusted.

"You can wash people in disinfectant?!" Monica said excited.

An hour passed and everybody grew more nervous. Dr Andrews arrived with  
a hospital porter closely behind him.

"Okay Rachel, are you ready?" He asked.

"Yeah I'm good" Rachel replied calmly.

Monica stood back from her and began to cry, she had been holding them  
in but she couldn't stop the tears from falling. Phoebe put an arm  
around her.

Rachel moved onto the Porters bed as Dr Andrews transferred her oxygen  
canister.

"I'll see you guys later" Rachel said.

They all grabbed for her hand and wished her luck sending their love.  
Monica composed herself and walked forward.

"You're going to be fine. I'll be here when you wake up. I love you ok?"

"I love you too"

Monica kissed her and held her close.

The porter wheeled Rachel away and Monica cried. She just let the tears  
stream from her face as her friend was taken to surgery. Ross looked  
away as Phoebe and Joey both cried next to him.

Rachel was taken to a waiting area on the surgical floor. There was  
another woman there waiting. The nurse put Rachel's hair into a blue  
shower cap type thing and left.

"What you having done?" the woman asked Rachel

"Heart surgery – you?"

"Appendix removed. Its minor compared to yours I guess."

After 5 minutes a nurse came and took Rachel into the OR. It felt icy  
cold in there and very bright. They helped Rachel move to the table and  
it was cold and hard as Dr Corday had described.

"Rachel we are going to secure your arms to the table?" A Nurse said as  
she begun putting soft restraints on her.

Rachel looked around when she heard a drill and she felt sick.

"Just stay calm sweetie" The nurse reassured her.

Rachel felt the nurse rub a small sponge onto her neck.

"I'm going to insert an IV, you may feel a small sting" The nurse told her.

Once the IV was in the nurse injected something into the port.

"Rachel, you are going to start feeling sleepy. Just relax and let the  
medication take over"

Rachel felt like her world of problems were being left behind. She was  
fighting to stay awake but the feeling of drowsiness was overpowering her.

"She's out" The nurse said.

"Okay, let's intubate and get her on the ventilator" the anaesthetist said.

Meanwhile Monica sat fidgeting in the canteen with the others.

"Are you sure you don't want any breakfast Mon?" Ross asked.

"I couldn't eat. They should have drilled her chest open by now" Monica  
said looking at her watch.

"How do you know?" Phoebe asked.

"I did a tutorial on my computer, I have every step in my head. They  
drill her chest open and spread her ribs. Then they attach tubes to her  
heart and put her on a bypass machine which beats for her heart. They  
then stop her heart and begin repairing it. The surgery should last from  
3-5 hours" Monica said reciting what she has seen and read.

"You really shouldn't work from that. Just try and forget about it for a  
minute" Chandler said trying to help her.

"Forget about it?" Monica snapped "My best friend is laying in a room  
upstairs with her chest cut open and her heart not beating! What happens  
if after the 5 hours they can't start her heart again? Then what? You  
can't live without your heart!" Monica spat

"Chandler, didn't mean…." Phoebe started.

"I know he didn't and I'm sorry" Monica cut in. "I just need to deal  
with this in my own way. Please"

The guys all waited in the surgical waiting area and after 5 hours  
Monica became even more anxious than she was already.

"The computer said 3-5 hours. It's been 5 hours" Monica said to nobody  
in particular.

After 15 more minutes Monica walked out of the room and found a member  
of staff.

"Is there any news on Rachel Green?" She asked a nurse.

"She isn't out from theatre yet" The nurse told her.

"The surgery was supposed to last 3-5 hours. It's been almost 6!"

A voice from behind startled her "There was more damage than we thought  
Monica. Dr Corday has had to cut into her heart" Dr Andrews said.

"Is she finished now?" Monica asked.

"Not yet, they are about to take her off of bypass and then close her  
chest. Everything is fine, it's just a little worse than we anticipated"

"So do you think a transplant is going to be needed?" Monica questioned.

"Let's see how she recovers and responds to her medication. Her recovery  
will be a little slower due to the cutting into the heart but that's it.  
Give her about 40 minutes and she will be in the ICU" Dr Andrews told  
her winking at her.

Monica went back and relayed the information to the guys. 40 minutes  
later Monica and co were standing in the reception when she saw Dr  
Crorday wheel a gurney out of the double doors. She quickly made her way  
to the rolling gurney.

Rachel looked dreadful. She had the shower cap over her head and her  
face was pale with sticky tape over her eyelids. Dr Corday was squeezing  
the oxygen pump attached to the tube in her mouth.

Monica could see tubes coming from under the covers and bags and  
cylinders attached to the side of the bed.

The situation was a million times worse than she had imagined it.

"She's okay. Let me just get her set up in the SICU and I will come and  
talk to you" Dr Corday told her.

15 minutes later Dr Corday came back. She explained that there was more  
damage than expected but she repaired it. She was confident that as long  
as Rachel responded well to the drugs then she wouldn't need a  
transplant. A healthy, stress-free lifestyle would help aswell.

"Can I sit with her?" Monica asked through tears.

"Of Course. While she is out I can only allow two at a time though. She  
will be intubated for the next 24 hours and we should expect her to  
regain consciousness in the next few hours. She will be groggy and  
frustrated at not being able to speak so just encourage her along and  
let her know that you are there with her." Dr Corday instructed.

Monica washed her hands with the disinfectant and walked into the  
surgical intensive care unit. There were machines and monitors  
surrounding her. She had a breathing tube coming from her mouth and many  
more tubes and wires attached to her.

Monica pulled up a seat and held her hand.

"I told you that you would be fine. I'm here when you wake up sweetie."  
Monica whispered to her.


	3. I can't do this

Four hours later and Monica was yet to leave her side. The others were  
coming in in shifts keeping Monica company and watching over Rachel.

Monica jumped when she noticed Rachel's eyes flickering. She quickly  
alerted the nurse who checked over her vitals.

"I'm here sweetie. Everything went so well" Monica told her standing  
over her softly stroking her face.

Rachel looked relieved that Monica was there and closed her eyes again.  
She was unaware of what was happening or what had happened. She was just  
so tired, all she wanted to do was sleep. Monica smiled at her as Rachel  
drifted back into a deep slumber.

When Rachel opened her eyes an hour later she seemed more alert. She  
squeezed Monica's hand and felt for the tube in her mouth.

"That's your breathing tube honey, it will come out a bit later" Monica  
told her.

Rachel seemed quite agitated but Monica reassured her that everything  
was fine and she should just rest and sleep.

Dr Corday walked in a little bit later and checked over Rachel.

"Everything looks good. All you can do now is rest" Dr Corday told her.

Rachel again put her hand to the breathing tube, indicating that she  
wanted it out.

"If your breathing is stable in the morning then we will take it out  
then. The Nurse will decrease the oxygen flow throughout the night and  
see how you respond. Its operating at 80 per cent now, if it's down to  
20 per cent in the morning and your breathing is stable I'll remove it"

Dr Corday excused herself as Rachel closed her eyes. Her movement was  
almost completely restricted. Her chest was wrapped up in bandages and  
she couldn't move her head because of the intubation, she was also  
irritated by a tube coming out of her nose which she kept feeling.

Rachel was pulled out of her thoughts when Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and  
Ross walked in.

"How are you feeling?" Phoebe softly whispered.

Rachel answered by giving a thumbs up.

"She's doing well. Hopefully the tube can come out in the morning."  
Monica answered.

"Are you in any pain?" Ross asked

Rachel tried to slowly shake her head to tell them no.

"She's morphined up to the eyeballs so she can't feel anything right  
now. They said they will start decreasing that tomorrow – so the pain  
will kick in then" Monica said whispering the last part.

Rachel hated being the invalid, she hated the fact that she couldn't  
participate in the conversation. Rachel's eyes flickered as she fought  
to keep them open but the drowsiness was too strong and she had no  
choice but to give in.

As Rachel slept the guys all went home while Monica spent the night  
sleeping in the chair next to Rachel. The nurse had to put Rachel in  
soft restraints because she kept grabbing at her chest and they were  
worried that she would hurt herself.

Rachel woke a few times throughout the night, starting to feel  
uncomfortable and irritated and the lack of movement she had. But Monica  
and the nurse were quick to comfort her and get her back to sleep.

Once morning arrived Dr Corday removed the breathing tube and Rachel  
felt much better. It hurt to breathe but at least she could talk. Once  
the doctors had talked through everything and examined her Monica was  
free to check how she was.

"How are you feeling?" She asked softly.

"Terrible. I don't feel like me, it's a strange feeling." Rachel said  
weakly and honestly.

"You just need to rest" Monica told her.

Rachel was still drowsy and slept most of the day which the nurse said  
was very normal. The tubes that they placed in her stomach were removed  
but she still had the chest tube and nose tube. Dr Corday told Monica  
that she wanted to keep Rachel in the SICU for another 24 hours of  
monitoring. There was blood coming from her chest tube and they needed  
to monitor it to rule out internal bleeding.

By 5.00PM on the Friday (48 hours after Rachel came out of surgery) she  
was getting frustrated. They had decreased her morphine so the pain was  
almost unbearable and every time she moved in the slightest the pain  
rocketed throughout her entire body. She would constantly touch her  
chest, which was still heavily bandaged and feeling the tube coming from  
her nose which was driving her mad.

"Can this come out?" Rachel asked feeling the tube.

"I'm afraid not Rachel that's your feeding tube and it's going to need  
to stay in place for a few days" the nurse told her.

"It's called an NG tube" Monica told Rachel

"Would you stop – you're freaking me out" Rachel told her jokingly.

"She's freaking us all out" Phoebe chimed in.

"I think that maybe I missed my calling, I should have become a doctor"  
Monica said in excited.

"Wow, how proud would mom and dad be having two doctors in the family"  
Ross deadpanned.

"You're a doctor?" The nurse asked him while filling in Rachel's chart.

"Well yes I am" Ross said in a posh voice.

"What do you practice?" The nurse asked interested.

"Dinosaurs!" Joey answered for him.

The nurse looked confused.

"I'm a Doctor of palaeontology." Ross tried to back track

"So you can't actually practice medicine?"

"Not exactly" Ross mumbled embarrassed.

A couple of hours later the guys were preparing to go home while Monica  
was outside in the bathroom.

"Chandler" Rachel whispered

"Are you okay?" He asked coming closer to her.

"Do me a favour and take Monica home. She looks exhausted." Rachel  
struggled out.

"She wants to stay with you Rach"

"I know, but she can't sleep in that chair for another night" Rachel said

"What's going on?" Monica asked as she walked back into the ICU.

"I think you should go home. You look terrible" Rachel softly told her.

"I'm fine Rach"

"Monica, I'm going to be fine tonight. I would rather you were rested  
now and when I need you to help me around you will be there."

After some convincing from the others Monica relented and went home.  
Rachel got a pretty good nights sleep, she woke a few times but the  
nurse was quick to fill any needs she had.

Monica turned up early the next morning and she did feel better. Dr  
Corday did her rounds and allowed for Rachel to be moved from the ICU to  
a room on the cardiac floor.

Rachel was moved and she felt better in her own room. She had a TV and  
didn't have the nurse checking her and pulling her about every 5  
minutes. She was settled in the room for about an hour watching rubbish  
TV with Monica when 2 nurses entered.

"This can't be good" Rachel muttered to Monica

"It's time to get you sitting up in a chair" The middle aged lady nurse  
said.

The two nurses moved Rachel around so her legs were off the bed. She  
became very light-headed but the nurse reassured her that was normal and  
just to take a second to compose herself. Monica hovered unsure whether  
to help or not, the nurses quickly lifted her onto her feet and led her  
to the soft high back leather chair next to the bed. By the time Rachel  
sat down she was totally breathless and exhausted.

"Just going to let you sit here for 5 minutes" The nurse said checking  
her NG tube and nasal prongs.

"Are you comfortable?" Monica questioned

"Not…. Really" Rachel said between breaths

After 5 minutes Rachel was exhausted and the nurses helped her back into  
bed. Once she was in she collapsed against the pillows.

"Is that normal?" Monica asked the nurse concerned.

"Yes very normal, it will take time. Tomorrow we will get her up  
walking" The nurse said adjusting Rachel's covers.

An hour later Rachel opened her eyes still tired from just sitting in  
the chair.

"Can I get you anything?" Monica quickly asked.

"A drink would be good please" Rachel asked with a scratchy throat.

Monica opened the mini-fridge and took out one of the fruit juices she  
had brought in for Rachel. She put the straw in it and helped Rachel to  
drink it.

"That better?" Monica asked as she put the drink on the side.

"Thanks. It's been a busy day what with sitting in a chair and all"  
Rachel smiled.

"That will get better Rach"

When the next day came Rachel was happy spending the morning with Monica  
and Phoebe playing cards. However, they were interrupted when the Nurses  
lived up to their promise and got Rachel up and walking. They assisted  
her on either side while a third nurse walked behind with her IV pole  
and Monica and Phoebe followed with a wheelchair.

Rachel was shocked at how hard she found it to take just a few steps.

"Just a couple more Rachel and then we will turn around" The kind nurse  
told her after 6 steps.

Rachel managed a couple more steps but couldn't go any further.

"I'm…. sorry… I…. just… can't" Rachel tried to choke out.

"Okay, let's get the wheelchair" The nurse agreed indicating for Monica  
to come closer.

When Rachel was settled back into bed she turned to Monica and Phoebe  
still breathless and exhausted.

"I can't… do this" She said between gasps

"Yes you can. You are doing great" Phoebe told her enthusiastically

Rachel shook her head in defeat.

"Nobody said this was going to be easy Rachel, but there is no turning  
back. You are going to get better and no matter how long it takes you  
will be back to full strength. You cant give up now." Monica told her  
firmly.

"I hate this" Rachel whispered

"I know you do but only you can get yourself better."

Monica hated being hard on Rachel especially when she was so ill but she  
needed Rachel to be strong.

The next few days passed and Rachel was getting a little bit stronger  
with each passing day. She was now able to take steps on her own (with  
the aid of a walker) so the doctors decided to remove her foley catheter  
so she could use the bathroom as and when needed.

After 10 days of being in the hospital it was decided that Rachel could  
go home. Monica almost went into breakdown mode, running around  
disinfecting the apartment and making up the guest room for Rachel  
before she picked her up that afternoon.

"Monica, would you calm down. She's just going to crash out. She won't  
care if the skirting behind the back of the wardrobe is clean" Chandler  
told her as she knelt on the floor in her rubber gloves and bucket of  
disinfectant.

"She's just had major heart surgery Chandler! Her immune system is weak,  
if she gets so much as a cold it could kill her!" Monica fired back.

By 2.30pm Monica had to relent, the apartment was gleaming by anybody  
else's standards but Monica wasn't overly happy but she had to pick up  
Rachel.

When Monica arrived at the hospital Rachel was sitting in the chair next  
to the bed. She still looked terrible, the Nike tracksuit bottoms were  
hanging off of her as was the red Nike t-shirt she had on.

"All ready to go?" Monica smiled as she walked into the room.

"Pretty much"

"Did you pack this?" Monica asked referring to the louis vuitton travel  
bag on the bed.

"No, the nurse did. Can you just check around to make sure everything is  
in" Rachel asked slowly still sounding breathless

Monica went into the bathroom and checked that Rachel had cleared  
everything, along with the small cupboards and fridge.

"She's done a great job" Monica said like an army inspector.

"Okay, all ready to go?" the nurse asked walking into the room pushing a  
wheelchair.

"Yeah, we think so" Rachel said trying to start standing.

Monica helped her by the arm, grabbing the Nike jacket from the bed and  
helping Rachel put it on. Once the jacket was on and zipped up Monica  
helped Rachel ease into the chair.

She was expecting an argument from Rachel on why she didn't need a wheel  
chair but Rachel seemed pleased to have it to hand.

"Have you signed the charts Rachel" The nurse asked.

"They are on the bed"

"Okay, you're all set. Do you need some help to get down to the car?"

"No, I'm good." Monica smiled grabbing the Louis Vuitton holder from the  
bed.

Rachel and Monica thanked the nurse and left. Monica pushed Rachel down  
to the waiting Porsche. Monica helped Rachel into the passenger side of  
the Porsche and then folded the wheelchair into the small back.

"How's it feel to be out?" Monica smiled as she started the engine.

"Good. Just have to wait and see if I need to do it all again"

Monica had tried her hardest to put her worst fears to the back of her  
mind just concentrating on Rachel's recovery.

As Monica drove out of the hospital Rachel gasped in pain as she went  
over the speed bumps.

"Sorry" Monica said driving as slowly as possible over the numerous  
speed restrictors.

"What a stupid place to have bumps when people have just had surgery!"  
Monica moaned.

Once they got outside of the apartment Monica set the wheelchair up and  
helped Rachel out of the car. Monica had gotten the key for the  
industrial elevator from Treager so that Rachel wouldn't be bothered  
with the stairs.

As they opened the door to the apartment Chandler, Ross, Phoebe, Joey,  
Charley and Mike all screamed SURPRISE causing both Monica and Rachel to  
jump.

"Oh My God! Do you think that is clever?! Monica screamed.

"It's a welcome home party" Joey smiled

"Is that a wise idea for somebody who has just had heart surgery?"  
Monica glared at them all.

"Monica, I'm fine" Rachel told her standing up from the chair.

Monica quickly relented and walked behind Rachel to balance her out.  
Rachel lasted about 20 minutes with the group until she became  
exhausted. Monica noticed having kept a hawk-eye on her the entire time.

"Okay guys, that's enough for today. Rachel is shattered and needs to  
rest. You can all come and visit again tomorrow." Monica interrupted.

"Oh" Joey and Phoebe replied in unison

"She's had an exhausting journey home and now this, it's all too much."

The guys all got up to leave kissing her goodbye and wishing her luck  
with the 'evil nurse lady'

"Do you want me to help you to the bedroom?" Monica asked her

"Can I just crash on your sofa for a while?" Rachel asked

Monica smiled and helped Rachel over to the sofa, where she laid down.  
Monica put the TV on and placed the blanket over her.

"Can I get you anything?" Monica asked softly stroking her hair as  
Rachel fought to stay awake.

Rachel just shook her head as she let the sleep overpower her and she  
succumbed to darkness.

As Rachel slept Monica began to prepare dinner whilst Chandler sat  
reading at the kitchen table.

"I think maybe I will go and live with Joey for a while" Chandler said  
without looking up from his paper

"What?" Monica asked confused turning around from the kitchen sink

"I just think that Rachel needs your undivided attention right now and  
if I'm here then I will compromise that"

"Are you jealous?" Monica fired back at him.

"I just think that this apartment is too small for the three of us"

"Why don't we just throw Rachel out then?" Monica hissed "Yeah, just  
throw her and her stuff onto the street"

"She has a luxury apartment actually, nicer and bigger than all of ours  
put together" Chandler muttered

Monica couldn't believe what she was hearing, she knew that she had  
neglected Chandler a little bit lately but Rachel was her best friend  
and she needed her.

"Okay fine, I'll take her to her place… and I'll move in with her"  
Monica shot back.

"There's no need for that Monica"

"Actually Chandler there is every need for it. You see she is incredibly  
sick, she has a 12 inch scar down her chest, she cant walk 10 steps  
without becoming out of breath and dizzy. She needs looking after"

"And I understand that"

"End of conversation" Monica told him walking away into her bedroom.

Monica was furious at Chandler's behaviour, how could he not understand  
that Rachel was her main priority right now?

Meanwhile Chandler was across the hall talking with Joey.

"It just got totally out of hand"

"Are you jealous of Rachel man?" Joey asked

"Of course not! I just miss my wife"

"Rachel isn't going to be sick forever you know. A few days and she will  
probably be back at home" Joey told him sipping his beer.

Chandler felt like an arsehole, the last thing he wanted was to upset  
everyone and be jealous of Rachel who was gravely ill.

"So what are you going to do?" Joey asked

"Apologise. Let my wife know that I love her very much and that I think  
what she is doing for Rachel is incredible"

As Chandler was talking over his problems with Joey, Rachel was stirring  
on the couch.

"Hey, dinner is almost ready" Monica told her from the armchair.

"It smells great" Rachel replied sleepily

Rachel looked at Monica and she looked sad, like something was weighing  
on her mind.

"Everything okay?" Rachel asked

"Yeah it's fine" Monica lightly smiled

"Come on, what's wrong?" Rachel pushed

"Nothing for you to worry about" Monica said getting up.

"Okay, I get it – I'm too sick to know" Rachel said picking the remote up

"It's not that"

"It's fine Mon"

Rachel had a way of guilt tripping Monica

"Chandler and I had an argument" Monica blurted out feeling guilty for  
not telling Rachel

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine. It wasn't anything serious I just don't like arguing  
with him"

"What was the argument about?" Rachel pushed

"I don't even know – we were just bickering"

Rachel knew that Monica was lying so suspected the argument was over the  
time Monica was spending with her.

"Does he want his wife back?" Rachel questioned

"He's just having a bad day. It's not about you"

"Look, I don't want this stupid heart condition to mess up your life as  
much as it has mine. Let me go and stay at my own place…."

"That won't be necessary Rach" Monica and Rachel both turned to see  
Chandler standing at the door with a big bouquet in his hand.

"I was a jerk earlier and it meant nothing. I'm glad that you are here  
and I'm looking forward to waiting on you hand and foot" Chandler told  
Rachel

"Why thanks Chandler" Rachel said trying to ease Monica's mood "But you  
didn't have to buy me flowers" She joked knowing full well they were for  
Monica

"Actually I didn't – they're for my gorgeous wife"

Rachel smiled as Monica and Chandler kissed.

Rachel, Monica and Chandler hung out all night eating dinner and  
watching a film. But Rachel had to give up half way through surrendering  
to bed.

Once Monica had helped Rachel into bed and watched her drift off into a  
deep sleep she returned to the living room where Chandler was waiting.

"She asleep?" Chandler asked

"Yeah like a baby" Monica said as she sat down on his lap

"Chandler?" Monica asked deep in thought

"Yeah?"

"She is going to be okay isn't she?"

"Of course she is Monica" Chandler told her sincerely

"How do you know?" Monica continued looking for reassurance

"A couple of reasons. One because she is Rachel and we all know what a  
fighter she is. And secondly because she has you looking after her, the  
best care in the God damn world and you never fail at anything"

"True!" Monica beamed

Monica and Chandler kissed passionately, Chandler was embarrassed at his  
small outburst earlier. He loved Monica more than anything in the world  
and he would do anything not to mess it up.

"Let's go to bed" Monica told him seductively

Chandler smiled as he took Monica's hand and she led him to the bedroom.


	4. The clock is ticking

As morning broke at Monica and Chandler's apartment, Rachel woke up in agonizing pain which was to be expected after the surgery.

"Monica!? Could you come in here please!?" Rachel yelled quietly.

"What's up?" Monica said to Rachel.

"I'm in agonizing pain right now so could you go get my pain killers so I can take some?" Rachel said in a somewhat raspy voice due to the pain.

"Sure thing!" said a somewhat excited Monica.

When Rachel was released from the hospital, she was prescribed a very strong pain medication meant to take the edge off of any pain she might have. Rachel was suppose to take one tablet as needed with the tablet lasting 24 hours before wearing off. In terms of pain, Rachel had some good days and some bad days but pulled through with all her friends help (Especially Monica's) Rachel made it to her 12 week appointment feeling better than she has in a long time which was very encouraging.

"All right Rachel, I'm just going to listen your heart to make sure it is working right ok?" said Dr Andrews.

"Ok." said Rachel.

"Your heart appears normal Rachel so I think the surgery helped. I'm just going to have you do some breathing exercises just to make sure your breathing is normal." said Dr Andrews.

"Ok." exclaimed Rachel.

Rachel Green passed the breathing exercises with flying colors and that everything looked good. An EKG was orderd just to be safe but was confident that she was in the all clear to do at least part time work at her place. Monica drove Rachel to the hospital for the test and got it done and over with, with the results coming back fine. Monica and Rachel were happy that this ordeal is finally over, or so they thought anyway. A few weeks would pass before all hell would break loose again on Monday.

"Monica, could you come in here please? I don't feel right." Panted Rachel.

Monica dashed as fast as she could into Rachel's room wondering what was wrong.

"Oh my god Rachel? What's wrong with you!? You don't look so good! I'm calling Dr Andrews right away" said a deeply concerned Monica

"Is that really necessary?" said a somewhat annoyed Rachel.

"Yes it is!" said a concerned Monica.

"Hello? Oh, Monica! What can I do for you?" exclaimed Dr Andrews.

"Well, Rachel is having a hard time breathing and is not doing so hot right now. What should I do?" said a deeply worried Monica.

"Get her to the hospital immediately. I'll meet you guys in the lobby!" said a very concerned Dr Andrews.

"Hey sweetie, How are you feeling?" said a worried Monica.

"Fine." Rachel lied.

"Rachel? I know your not. I'm sorry sweetie but I'm gonna have to take you to the hospital to make you feel better again." said Monica.

Rachel didn't even have the courage to say anything that would get her out of going to the hospital. She was desperate for anything that would make her feel better.

"Help ... me Monica!" as Rachel said between breathes and while crying.

"Don't worry Rachel, the dr's will get you better." Monica said brightly

Monica picked up Rachel and put her in the Porsche and drove off to the hospital. They met Dr Andrews on the ground floor who took them up to the fith floor.

"Go ahead and place her in the bed Monica!" said a frantic Dr Andrews.

"Ok." said Monica.

"We need to get Rachel on an oxygen mask right away to help with her breathing!" exclaimed Dr Andrews.

The nurses proceeded to get the oxygen mask ready and then put it on her face, covering her mouth and nose allowing Rachel to finally breath without any issues. They got an IV in Rachel's right arm, a blood pressure cuff on another, a pulse oxymeter on her finger to the right of her thumb on the right hand to monitor her oxygen levels, sticky pads on her chest to get her heart rate and also made Rachel change into a gown. The doctors had a portable x-ray machine come in and take a picture of her heart and noticed that the surgery did not work and that she would need a transplant very soon. The doctors left Monica alone with Rachel who then called the others.

"Hello? Ross? It's me Monica. I'm at the hospital with Rachel right now. It appears she will need a transplant to survive." said a nervous Monica.

"Oh my god? Are you serious?" questioned Ross.

"Yes I am!" replied Monica.

Monica hung up and Ross told the others who decided to come visit Rachel in the hospital but before that Rachel had a meltdown.

"I want to go home Monica!" cried Rachel.

"I know, but you have to stay here Rachel! It's for the best." explained Monica.

"I know, but I don't want to be here. I want to be at home with you guys. I want to be at Central Perk having coffee. I don't want to wear this oxygen mask but I know if I take it off I won't get better. If no one will let me go then I will leave on my own with no one knowing." Cried Rachel.

"Awwwwww, I feel for you Rachel. I know where you'd rather be but it's for your own good. And I don't think running away would be the best idea." explained Monica.

"And why not!?" said an angery Rachel."

"Well, it's because of two things. One is the current state of your health and two, you have a bracelet on that if you try to leave will cause all the doors to lock and alert the doctors that you're trying to leave and that bracelet is impossible to cut up." said Monica.

"Oh." Said Rachel after realizing what could happen.

"We're here!" the other four friends announce.

"Hi!" said a very weak Rachel.

"How are you doing Rach?" said a worried Ross.

"Not good." exclaimed Rachel.

"I thought the surgery was suppose to stop this? Why is this happening again?" wondered Phoebe.

"We thought so to Phoebe but I guess stuff happens" said Monica!

Monica wanted a few minutes of alone time with Rachel so she kicked the other four out for a little bit but nothing would prepare them for what was gonna happen.

"Don't worry, Rachel. You are a fighter and will pull through. I love you and know you can do this!" Monica said as she stroked Rachel 's hair.

"Monica, that's so swee." Rachel said before she began gasping for air.

Rachel began gasping for air with all the alarms going crazy as well prompting Monica to yell for the doctors. The four friends outside heard all of this and were wondering what was going on.

"HELP! I NEED A DOCTOR IN HERE STAT!" Yelled a very panicked Monica.

The doctors came rushing in asking Monica to leave the room. Monica had one last thing to say to Rachel before she left.

"Rachel, I love you and know you will pull through." said a comforting Monica.

"I need a crash cart in here stat!" yelled Doctor Andrews.

Rachel was scared of what was going on around her and tightly gripped Monica's hand. The doctors came back with a crash cart and began to put a tube down Rachel's throat and attach an ambu bag so they could breath for her.

"Hey Rachel? Could you let go of Monica's hand so she can leave for a few minutes"? asked Dr Andrews.

Rachel refused to let go and only tightened her grip. The doctors had to forcibly remove Rachel's hand from Monica's hand so she could leave. Rachel was not happy about what they did but couldn't talk due to the breathing tube down her throat. Monica left and told the four friends what was going on.

"What's going on?" Questioned Ross, Joey, Chandler and Phoebe.

"Well, they got her put on a breathing tube with an ambu bag attached in which the doctors are squeezing to help breath for Rachel. Once her breathing is stabalized, they are going to put her on a ventilator until a transplant can be found." explained Monica.

"Oh my god!" said Ross.

"Why can't this be me?" questioned Phoebe.

"This can't be happening to my best friend can it?" wondered Joey.

"Rachel is just the most beautiful girl in the world second to Monica. Why would this happen to her of all people?" questioned Chandler.

The doctors got Rachel's breathing stabilized so they could get her on the ventilator safely. The doctors came out and explained what they did and that they could see her but that Rachel was in a coma. Monica went in first and broke down when she saw her best friend lifeless in a hospital bed with lots of tubes running from her body keeping her alive. Monica knew that if a transplant donor was not found soon, Rachel could die.

"Oh my god!" Monica said as she entered Rachel's room.

Monica barely recognized her own friend in the hospital bed. She went up to Rachel and proceeded to talk to her.

"Rachel! I love you dearly and will see you when you wake up" said a sobbing Monica.

The four other friends came in and said "I love you" to Rachel in unison. Joey, Chandler, Ross and Phoebe left to give Monica and Rachel some alone time. Monica sat next to Rachel stroking her practically lifeless friends hair hoping she would make it out of this alive. The doctor came in with some good news.

"Hey Monica? I have some good news for you!" exclaimed Doctor Andrews.


	5. Thank god

"You do!?" questioned a somewhat excited Monica.

"Yeah, we found a transplant for her! exclaimed an excited Dr Andrews.

"You did? Who's the donor?" Monica said.

"A guy named Richard Burk." Dr Andrews said.

"Richard Burk?" Monica questioned.

"Yeah, why?" Dr Andrews said Curiously.

"Did he work at an eye doctor by chance?" Monica said.

"Here's the paperwork if you want to look it over Monica." Dr Andrews said.

"Ok" exclaimed Monica.

Monica looked it over and realized that this Richard Burk did not have an E at the end of his name meaning he was not their Family Friend Richard Burke.

"We should be able to begin the transplant as soon as the heart comes in. Doctor Corday will be in to check on Rachel just to make sure we can proceed." Dr Andrews said

"Ok!" said a somewhat excited Monica.

As Doctor Corday walks in to Rachel's room for a quick examination, he learns that the heart is available and that the transplant can start anytime. Doctor Corday had a clipboard in which he wrote down Rachel's vitals and other important stuff. Doctor Corday noticed that Rachel's oxygen was a bit low so he turned up Rachel's ventilator to 100% to try and raise it before the surgery.

"All right Monica. Everything looks good on Rachel except her oxygen levels aren't where I'd like to see them so I went ahead and turned up her ventilator, so It's now operating at 100%. I will check up on Rachel in n hour and if her oxygen levels have gone up, then we can take her to surgery. If not, then we need to figure out why her oxygen is running low." said Doctor Corday.

"Ok." Monica said.

Both doctors left and the room was silent as it possibly could be. The only noises were the heart monitor beeping and the ventilator making breath like sounds as it pumped oxygen to Rachel's heart and lungs via her breathing tube. Monica broke down in tears as now it felt like her friend was a robot as Monica compared the breathing sounds the ventilator was making to that of a robot breathing. Monica got close to her blonde friend and started rubbing her head and comforting her.

"Rachel, I'm not sure if you can hear me or not but I love you and know that you will pull through this just fine. And regardless of what the other four friends think, you are not an Invalid. You are still a living person who was sent to earth with a goal." Said a comforting Monica.

Rachel was able to hear what Monica said as she gripped Monica's hand and held it there for the next hour. Doctor Corday came in for his checkup and noticed that Rachel's oxygen levels had improved and that they could begin the surgery. Rachel was able to hear the words surgery but obviously didn't want to have it as she tightened her grip on Monica's hand. This, however posed a problem and they had to forcibly remove her hand from Monica's but when they got it removed, Rachel's heart rate sank which caused the doctors to be concerned. Monica grabbed Rachel's hand and tightened her grip and Rachel's heart rate stabilized.

"What the? I've never seen anything like this before. It's clear Rachel doesn't want to be away from you, but that poses a problem." said a concerned Doctor Andrews and Corday.

"Can I hold her hand until we get to the operating room?" wondered Monica.

"I suppose so." Doctor Andrews and Corday said.

The doctors began to wheel Rachel out of the room with Monica holding her hand with Doctor Corday squeezing an ambu bag attached to Rachel's breathing tube. As they got in front of the operating room, Doctor Corday gave Monica a chance to say something to her friend before the surgery begins.

"Rachel, I love you and will see you when you wake up. I hope everything goes well." said a saddened Monica.

Monica then proceeded to kiss Rachel on the forehead. Rachel then proceeded to let go of Monica which allowed the Doctor Corday to take her back. Doctor Andrews directed Monica to the waiting room in case she forgot where it's at. Monica also realized that she forgot to call Ross, Joey Chandler and Phoebe about the surgery so she pulls out her phone and calls them to tell them the news. They all come rushing down at what seamed like record speeds.


	6. The surgery

"Hey Monica!" everyone said in unison.

"How's Rachel?" Ross asked concerned.

"Last time we saw her, she was in a coma." Phoebe said.

"She's in surgery right now." Monica said.

"That's great!" Chandler said sarcastically.

"I can't wait to have Rachel back." Joey said.

Five hours pass when Doctor Andrews comes out and tells the gang that Rachel will be out of surgery in a few minutes and be put in the SICU and that they can visit her then.

"Hi everyone!" Dr Andrews said.

"Hello Doctor Andrews!" Everyone said in unison.

"Rachel will be out of surgery very soon. She will be in the SICU and should regain consciousness within a few hours. Rachel will have to be on the ventilator until she can breathe on her own which could take a couple of days. Rachel may become frustrated as she won't be able to speak due to the breathing tube so the best you can do is comfort her and let her know that you love her and that you accept her medical state." Doctor Andrews said.

The double doors then began to open with Doctor Corday wheeling a gurney. Monica rushes up to it. Rachel looked very dreadful, her skin was very pale and was still unconscious. The doctor was also squeezing an ambu bag that was again attached to Rachel's breathing tube.

"Let me get Rachel situated in SICU and I will tell you what happened" Doctor Corday said.

Doctor Corday got Rachel situated in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit and came back to tell Monica what happened.

"The surgery went on without a hitch. We were able to get her heart transplanted successfully and should make a full recovery. She is still unconscious but should wake up soon. She may feel groggy and a little frustrated since she won't be able to speak but as long as you comfort her, she'll be fine. As with last time, only two visitors are allowed right now until she wakes up." explained Doctor Corday.

When Monica arrived into her friends room, lots of tubes were coming out of her body giving her PTSD-esque flashbacks of last time. Monica also noticed the breathing tube coming from Rachel's mouth as well. Monica pulled up a chair and stroked Rachel's hair with each friend taking shifts keeping Monica company until they went home. Monica noticed Rachel's eyes were open at around 6:00 PM. Rachel tried to pull out the breathing tube but Monica stopped her.

"That's your breathing tube Rachel. Remember when you had this the last time?" Monica said.

Rachel then remembered the experience and stopped.


	7. Rachel's point of viewdiary

"Why do I need this breathing tube" I said to my self. I can breathe on my own. I don't see why I need something to breathe for me. I look at the heart monitor to see what looked like the words O2 with a number reading 75% but my vision was still blurry from the anesthetics. I quickly realized that my breathing was not stable and that I did need the breathing tube. I also noticed I had a tube that went through my nose which annoyed me to no end. I motioned for the nurse to take it out but the nurse explained that it was my feeding tube and that I needed it or else I would go hungry.

"I love you" Those were the last words I heard before the surgery. I have no idea who said it but it must've been Monica. I laid in the bed unable to move much due to the ventilator and the wounds on my chest. I felt like an Invalid as I was afraid nobody was going to accept me and my condition and that I would be pushed to the streets with no one, not even Monica to take care of me but I knew deep down that Monica would accept me and my condition and not make me feel like an Invalid. Monica came in and I started to shed tears. Monica came up to me and asked if everything is ok so I replied with a thumbs up but deep down, Monica knew that I was not ok but I couldn't talk due to the breathing tube. When Doctor Corday came in to check up on me, I touched my breathing tube wanting him to take it out but was ignored.

"Everything is healing nicely Rachel and you should be out of the SICU soon. What's that Rachel? You want your breathing tube out? I'm sorry sweetie but I can't remove it yet. I need to know if you can breathe on your own first before I can remove it. Hopefully we can do all that tomorrow morning if your breathing is stable" Doctor Corday told me.

When I heard that the breathing tube wouldn't come out until tomorrow, I became a little irritated as I wanted it out now but didn't get my wish. At around 9:00 PM, I began to feel very drowsy and fought to stay awake but the drowsiness won and I drifted into a deep sleep. Monica also slept with me as well. Doctor Corday woke me up at around 6:00 AM to check my vitals and noticed my oxygen levels were not to his liking so I remained intubated for a couple more hours. At around 8:00 AM Doctor Corday came in and saw I was ready to be weaned off the ventilator. He told me that he was going to turn the ventilator off but not remove it as he wanted to see if I could breathe on my own for thirty minutes before they removed it. The test began and it did not go well. No more than ten minutes in was I begging for the ventilator to be turned back on which had the doctors very concerned that I wasn't storing oxygen properly. They needed to do some x-rays to see if there was lung damage that might of unknowingly happened during the surgery so I was wheeled to the x-ray room with a doctor squeezing what looked like the oddest balloon that I've ever seen. All I knew about it was that whenever it was squeezed, oxygen would fill my body and that I needed it or otherwise I would die either on the way to x-ray or during x-ray. They did the x-ray and found some blood on my lungs so a chest tube was inserted which hurt like hell to remove it. I was also put back on the ventilator. While back in the room, I motioned the nurse to get my phone so I could look up the oxygen balloon thing. I went to google and typed in Oxygen pump and viewed images of the device known as an ambu bag and was like "This is it! This is what they were using on me on my way to x-ray." A few hours later, the chest tube was removed and they did the oxygen test again. I passed with flying colors and was removed from the ventilator. I felt relieved that I could finally talk again and express myself and not have to hold it any longer and be called an Invalid by my friends because I can't talk and partake in their conversations. Whew! That's a long entry. Probably the longest diary piece I've written, but I needed to express my thoughts and feelings so that I could get them off my chest. I think I've expressed all the thoughts and feelings I have but may add more if my thought and feelings start to bug me. Oh, and one more thing before I finish this entry. That Jennifer Aniston chick on Marley and Me looks a lot like me and I mean not just a little, but a lot. She looks like she could be my identical twin sister that my parents hid from me and got adopted. Maybe I should send a letter to Jennifer asking if we're related by chance. The movie ends and a show called Cougar town comes on and features a girl named Courtney Cox playing the lead role in the show. Like the Jennifer Anistion chick, Courtney had the destincson of looking like my close friend Monica Geller. I look up at the TV again and see that Jennifer Aniston chick again. I was trying to figure out what was going on so I called Monica and told her that our long lost Identical twins are on Cougar Town right now which causes Monica to fly down to see for her self and sure enough, Monica saw it too. She was just as baffled as I was. I now officially close this diary entry.


	8. Going home

Rachel was moved from the SICU to a regular room on the cardiac room. Her NG tube was also removed as well.

"Hey sweetie, How are you feeling?" wondered Monica.

"Fine." said a weak Rachel Karen Green.

Rachel then proceeded to hand Monica her Diary as she wanted her to read the long entry that Rachel had wrote. Monica was astounded by how long the entry was and also had no idea that Rachel heard her words before the surgery and had no idea that Rachel was considering herself an invalid. Monica then reassured her friend that everything was all right.

"Rachel, everything is going to be all right. You made it through the hardest part fine. This part is a little bit easier." Monica said.

"You don't consider me an invalid do you Monica?" cried Rachel.

"No honey I don't. None of us do. We just think it's different not having you around at the coffee house and the apartment." Monica said.

"Thanks Monica! I knew I could trust you guys." Cried Rachel.

Monica was giving her friend a gentle hug when two nurses came in and wanted Rachel to sit in the chair next to the bed so the nurses put her in the chair comfortably.

"How are you feeling now Rachel?" Monica asked.

"Not great!" Rachel exclaimed

"Sitting in this chair hurts like hell and I want to get out of it and just lie in bed!" said a somewhat angery Rachel.

"I know you don't want to do this but you have to. Only you can recover yourself. I can't do everything for you. I can't walk for you, talk for you and so on!" Monica said a bit loudly.

Monica didn't mean to get loud at her sick friend but Rachel needed some tough love which made her realist that Monica was right. The next day, the nurses came back to get Rachel walking which she dreaded but knew she had to do. The nurses got her out of bed and into the hallway. Rachel only made it ten steps before feeling out of breath.

"Come on Rachel, Just a few more steps and then you can go back to your room." said the kind nurse.

"I ... can't do ... this anymore." Rachel said as she tried catching her breath.

"That's fine. We'll take you back." replied the nurse.

Rachel was put back in her room and immediately fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillows. Monica wondered if this was normal to which the nurses said that it was. Rachel was finally able to walk with the aid of a walker. Rachel was released into the care of Monica a few days later.

"How are you feeling Rach?" asked Monica.

"Sleepy but fine." replied a drowsy Rachel.

"Ok." said Monica.

Rachel had her twelve week appointment and everything looked good.

"All right Rachel, Just hop on up to the table and I'll do a quick check on you." explained Doctor Andrews.

"Everything is healing wonderfully, You should be able to return to part time work next and then full time work within three months ok?" said Doctor Andrews.

"Ok. I really miss my job so hopefully I can return then."

"I think you will." said Doctor Andrews.

And that's that. Thank you to all who read this story and I hope you enjoyed it. Credit goes to BoozedBoy for the first three chapters, not me (He did state in the original that this was allowed) Credit can go to me for the other five chapters.


End file.
